"Gotta have Faith" (boom-pa-boomp...George Micheal)

I have to pass on a short lil' thought from my day, the other day. To set the scene: I was running errands with my mother in law, Sally Jane, and we went to the library to return some of her books. She is brilliant and quite the avid reader. It was on Sunday therefore the library was closed so I just pulled up next to the drop off behind another car along side the sidewalk. Sally got out to put her returns in the box. While she was getting out there was this sweet elderly lady that had just returned her materials and was walking back to her car where her husband was waiting. She looked up at Sally wanting to make eye contact and give her a smile, but Sally was looking the other direction. You could slowly see the smile disappear from the elderly lady's face as she realized her moment had passed. All the while I sat in my car, in the drivers seat just hoping that she would look my way so I could smile back at her. This was a brief moment, but one that for some reason haunted me all day long! My thoughts drifted to how a second can truly make or possibly brake someones day. Anyways, several hours later we were on our way back to Sally's house and we had to stop at Walgreen's, across town from the library, I ran in to grab what we needed and low and behold I came across that same lady coming out of the store. I smiled as big as I could and she smiled back; I then said how are you and her response was "Thank you..." (with a small sigh of relief), she smiled back and said I'm good, and you? I moved out of her way of the path to her car and said I'm wonderful! We smiled and went on our way.... Wow! My thoughts were at peace finally!

This long thought is just to prove that God works in all things. He knew that I was bothered and he produced a situation for me to seize the moment. Thank you lord for those brief moments of inspiration. We all have the potential to be the very best we can be. Devin and I have visited about this for hours. It mostly comes down to making sure you're directing your faith in the right place. Sometimes in the hectics of daily routine my direction or our direction can be altered so easily. We find ourselves putting more faith in other places, such as friends or family. Which is good to believe in people, but our Faith never needs to leave the cross. Our faith always needs to be in the direction of our Savior and that's something that can't be beaten out by people. That's what I mean by that. I know I'm rambling, but I was put in a situation where I put entirely too much faith in a "best friend" and I don't think most people can handle that much. It can cause a breaking point especially if they aren't Christan's. I thought I could pull her up and in the end I don't feel that happened. I wasn't pulled down, but I feel that I was made to have grown through the situation. Growing in Christ, which is an amazing journey, is also difficult at times to see the big picture. For weeks this has been on my heart, I still really don't know how exactly to express all that I am feeling and my thoughts but this is a start I suppose. Keep shining and know that you are in my prayers. I thank God for you; continue to be strong and have faith!

That is why we always pray for you, asking our God to help you live the kind of life he called you to live. We pray that with his power God will help you do the good things you want and perform the the works that come from your faith. We pray all this so that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ will have glory in you, and you will have glory in him. That glory comes from the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 THESSALONIANS 1:11-12

Brewster Disco Dance

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Bah Hum Bug...

Okay so the weather outside is frightful and our fire is so delightful, but our two year old computer has died. It really is a sad time at the Brewster Home because I had kept everything in the world on there... pictures, songs, books, programs, projects, etc... I'm so bummed. The Geek Squad might be able to save my stuff but they said they won't be able to save the computer. If I had of known this I would have just kept everything on my seven year old gateway! Anyways, the upside is that I may be enjoying a new Mac for Christmas, but until then its slowly moving along on this old bag of bones gateway. Tee Hee!!!

I hope you are all well and enjoying the Christmas Season!

My Mode Design

Here are some of my newest lil' treasures on my online shop. I've been painting and printing like a crazy person. I so enjoy doing this kind of stuff. Most of my stuff is customized, but I have holiday photo cards, gift stickers, kids furniture, frames and then stationary or invitation stuff. I recently had three custom frame orders and now I'm working on doing two wedding invitation sets, plus some party invites for another lady in Iowa. Who would have thought! Anyways, I hope all is well with everyone and the shopping isn't driving you mad.... yet!!!

www.ModeDesign.etsy.com

Etsy is an amazing place to find some really fabulous gifts or stuff for yourself. Everything is either handmade or vintage (20 yrs plus). There are so many talented people out there, this is a fun place to see their creations.

Happy Shopping!

Fast and Furious

Can you believe it's already December? I mean hello, where did this year go? Anyways, things around here have been a little bit crazy, to say the least. My dad has been in the hospital for eleven days and counting... he went in for day surgery and low and behold he's still there. I wish I could explain whats going on, but I myself don't really know. He fell several months ago and hurt his knee, I took him in then to get it checked out at the doctor. Then a couple of weeks later my lil' brother, Ira, took him back in to have it looked at again. They kept telling us that it was just bruised and it would only heal with time. Well, after too much time had gone by we had someone else look at it and right away they said he had some kind of bacteria infection and had torn something else.... very undetailed on the whole thing. Anyways, that was three days before Thanksgiving and they scheduled day surgery for the Friday morning after.... well he's still there and since then he has had three surgeries! Somedays the nurses act like its something very threatening other days they act as if things are fine and this sort of thing happens all the time. Not only that but now he has staph infection. They say he needs to be there for another two weeks and then they are moving him to a nursing home for six weeks in order to keep him on the strong meds and I V. I mean come on... what's the deal? We still really don't know, that's the kicker! So I ask for your prayers for my dear dad. I feel he's spent the last fifteen years in a hospital like setting, I know he's strong but goodness. He is in pain, but the morphine, muscle relaxers, hydrocodine, and whatever else are trying to control it or pain managing it. Anyways, he is himself through and through! He's either rubbing the nurses hands or feet or he's asking them if they believe in Jesus. This is his time to continually shine for our Lord and Savior. The fact alone that he's been through so much and still maintains his positive outlook isn't enough for him, he adds to the Kingdom by speaking the Word to everyone he comes in contact with. He is an amazing man! And God has many, many, many treasures stored for him in Heaven.

My Amazing Husband

My husband the Great! I just had to take a minute to say how lucky I am. I have someone who is a constant inspiration in my life. Devin is marvellous!!! Lately I've been paying attention to the little things he does to complete my day... like how its been a lil' chilly lately and he will build a fire just because I love to have it crackleing in the back ground. Or how he'll let me put my cold feet under his warm legs at night... and you know that can't be comfortable! Or even better he laughs and hugs me everyday for no reason at all. He is marvellous. I'm so thankful for him!!!

My Preggo Mego

We are going to pretend that this is a picture update from my friend Megan... aka Mego. She doesn't believe in the whole "let's create a blog so everyone can be up to date on how she is doing!" So I will sort of do it for her, only this time. Hehe, such a good friend! She thinks she is too busy... blah, blah, blah. I tried to tell her that my dear friend Stacy D. has two kids and another is about to bust out any day and she still finds time to upload a few pics and lil' details of her daily routine, so far nothing though. So again I am going to do a lil' update for my dear friend... Mego is an amazing friend. She is someone who I've had the pleasure in watching grow over the past couple of years. Her personality, her spirit they are all her own. She is going to be such a great mom.
I have a prayer request for my lil' pregnant friend: She had to take a lil' visit to the hospital last week due to a few things. So I ask for prayer. She isn't due until March, so pray that she gets to feeling a lil' better and that everything is perfect and healthy for her, Brad, and their baby boy.
"I love you, Mego!!!"

Always... Patsy Cline

We went on a double date last night to big Sweetwater, Texas to see the "Always... Patsy Cline" show performed. It was alot of fun. The Hirsch's and The Brewster's trucked it over and met up with some of their family for dinner at the local bar-be-que place. It was tastie! Then off to the show. The show has been performed all over the country, it even had a run off broadway.
It is more than a tribute to the legendary country singer who died tragically at age 30 in a plane crash in 1963. The show is based on a true story about Cline’s friendship with a fan from Houston named Louise Seger, who befriended the star in a Texas honky-tonk in l961, and continued a friendship through phone calls and letters with Cline until her death.
The musical play, complete with down home country humor, true emotion and even some audience participation, includes many of Patsy' unforgettable hits such as Crazy, I Fall to Pieces, Sweet Dreams and Waking After Midnight…27 songs in all. The show’s title was inspired by Cline's letters to Seger, which were consistently signed "Love ALWAYS... Patsy Cline.”
It was cute! The voice of Patsy was a Wylie Alumni... Twilla, I believe. She sounded just like her...... her voice! You almost couldn't tell the difference between her and the real songs. Oh and the lil' friend Louise, she was a hoot. We had a really good time!

Lexi's doctor visit

Yet again, another week has just flown by. To start things off Lexi's leg has really been hurting her. I guess I should start of by saying Lexi is my baby. She goes everywhere with Devin and I. She loves boat rides, trips to our friends house, ice cream runs, you name it. Anything we do she is a major part of, she completes our family, heck sometimes she is the center of our family. She is a dog, but she doesn't know it and that's something we don't ever plan on telling her. Okay so about her back leg, she won't put any weight on it, or she hasn't in the past several weeks or so. This has been sort of an on going battle for the last couple of years. If she plays ball or does anything that she is stopping and going and jumping and such the next morning she will be a little slow to get around on her back leg. So she had an appointment to visit her vet on Friday morning. Of course, Lexi is the greatest baby in the entire world, she's so smart and has a personality larger than life. Oh I just love her so much! Well we get to the vet and I help Lex out of the car and she almost takes off the opposite way... lil' sneaky thing. She did not want to go in. Bless her heart, she knew exactly where we were. Once we were in the exam room she sat in the corner behind me and my chair, of course the hardest place for the Doctor to fit in. Once she realized he just wanted to love on her she slowly came out. Then it was my turn to panic. He started feeling of her knee telling my he thought she might have ripped her tendons behind the knee, but he wouldn't be sure until they did x-rays. In order to do x-rays they need to give her something to knock her out.... Ugh. As my heart sinks down to my big toe. I told him that I wouldn't, couldn't leave her. So I was able to go back with her. Once they gave my girl the shot it was all but ten seconds later she was out of it.... This was one of the hardest things for me to watch. She was awake, but she couldn't move. Her tongue just hung out the side of her mouth as she just starred at me, and into space. Tears just rolled (streamed) down my face through out the entire procedure. Then it took her about an hour to be able to even get up, but the vet was nice enough to give us on of their rooms to rest in. Okay, so picture this my sweet Lexi on the floor with a blanket and me sprawled eagle next to her. My arm was a pillow for her head, as she slobbered uncontrollably from the medicine. She was shaking and trying to get up. Of course, tears filled my face again. I tried to not let her hear it in my voice, but I gained a greater respect for all my friends who have children who have had to go through something traumatic. I think after all that God knew that I wouldn't be able to take it if we had to go see that orthopedic surgeon in Dallas, so he took it away. By the time we got the x-ray back she didn't have any kind of tendon problems or broken issues, she has arthritis around the knee. The vet said he was a lil' shocked, my response was Praise the Lord. So if your ever in the Abilene area and you hear a story about a crazy lady who cries and talks to God out loud, her dog, and a vet visit rest assured its just me!

A perfect Sunday!

This last Sunday was so amazing. Devin and I went to Clyde to spend the day with my Mema and my Dad. Mema made Devin and I, along with my great aunt Ruth, a gourmet meal. Oh there is nothing like my Mema's cookin'! Not to mention she had at least seven different desserts for us! I love my Mema, she is one of my most favorite people in the world. There really isn't alot of my child hood memories that don't include her. I count myself very lucky to have lived on the ranch within walking distance from her house. Every Sunday when we were little we would go to church and then have a huge Sunday lunch at Mema's house, then we'd play outside or dress up in the back closets, while the grown ups took naps or watched football. You don't realize how great traditions are until they are gone. Well I am taking a vow now to restart this tradition... To Mema's every Sunday! Yay!
We also got to hang out with my dad for a bit, in between his church meetings and such. He rubbed our feet... which was nice. He's so great at that whole reflexology thing. God has blessed him with that and so much more, and I know there is even more to come for his faithful servant. Dad also has a rose garden that he has been keeping over the summer. It's really a sight! He grows some of the most beautiful roses, then he snips them off and puts them in vases and carrys them to different people. Its really something to see someone so giving. He runs out of vases rather quickly though... its nice because people will send back his gifted vase so he can reuse it.
Awe, what a great Sunday. I will say this sometime this week if you have a moment, pray for those who are alone or just lonely. Pray that God will give you the opportunity to change someones day or moment, in turn you'll see that that will change you as well.
As my Dad would say "Keep Shining!!!"

Happy Thursday!

Hola'! So, I have officially started my Christmas decorating. If my dear husband would have had it his way we would have done it around the first of October... but I convinced him that we at least had to allow Halloween to pass. So, I changed things up this year, normally I have a small tree in every window, with the large one in the living room. Not this year... hehe, I used them all as decor in the living area. I must add it looks great, so far. Lights, lights, and more lights! The Christmas Spirit is such a comfort. I almost wish it would get chilly so that I could have a reason to make coffee or hot chocolate late at night. Its funny because that always makes me feel so grown up... have a few friends over and enjoy something HOT to drink. I'm sure its the same way with the girls on Sex and the City feel about Cosmos... that's me with Coffee, Hot Cider, Hot Tea, or even Cocoa, but it has to be in the evening for the grown up feeling to make way. haha! Kind of like eating a Skor candy bar. Yes, I know I'm retarded. This was the candy my mother ate when we were little, so now if I have one it makes me feel grown up... again I know I'm Retarded. Anyways, I hope your all having a fabulous week! God is in control!!! Muah!

Be a bounce back person

A bounce-back person sees adversity and every setback not as permanent, but temporary. It’s not going to last forever. Every difficulty that comes your way, you can be encouraged by it, knowing that you’re going to come out better than you were before. Why is that? Because it is in our DNA. God created us and intends us to walk in the same power which raised Christ from the dead, that same overcoming power and attitude that even the grave can’t keep down.

Studies prove that during a hurricane, a palm tree will simply stretch and not break from the strong winds. It’s bent and pushed over, and all the while, it’s root system is actually being strengthened and given new opportunities for growth. That is the same way we were built to be. It even says in Psalm 92:12, “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree.” That means God knew there would be difficult times in our lives, that things would come against us, trying to steal our joy, peace and victory. He’s not surprised by our difficulties, but rather knew ahead of time and equipped us with everything we need in Him! Because we have strong roots, we are going bounce right back. The storms in life will come. The winds will blow. But no weapon formed against us will prosper!

I got this from Joel Osteen. I thought it might be a good day to pass it along. So happy election day, and remember no matter the outcome God is in Control.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween! We had a spook-tacular evening. After much thought of what to dress up as I went as Minnie Mouse. Which first it was going to be a Madonna look from 1986... the one where she wears a tutu and mesh gloves with a head band and leg warmers... but it quickly turned into Minnie. We had a blast! Kandis and I created our outfits just hours before the evening. We actually made my black tutu... so cute! And then we embellished her look with rhinestones and ribbons. We decided to do something a lil' different by ordering pizza! (Thanks James!) Yay, that meant easy clean up and no cooking. It was good too, New York style. After that we headed off into the night. My accomplices included a Cowboy (John Hirsch) a Referee (Kandis Hirsch) The Cinch Man (Devin) The Rider (Olivia) Devin (James) Conway Twittie (Ben Brewster) and Minne Mouse (me). We laughed all night and had a really good time. My favorite is Conway Twittie singing "Happy Birthday Darlin' " and saying "Hello Darlin' " to anyone that was around! Too funny! Here's a cute picture of me and my Hubbie, isn't he a cuttie... oh and pretend you don't see my double chin!!! haha!Also, earlier in the week was Ben Brewster's birthday... No relation. But he is one of our dearest friends. We had a chili cook-off and decked out the house for a halloween style birthday bash. It was fun. I moved a long table into the middle of the living room and all eight of us dined in a far from normal fashion... super enjoyable. We had yummie food for the cold weather; Chili, tamales, cornbread, crackers, and mmmm birthday cake!!! Always fun to be had with the Brewsters... all three of us!!! Happy Birthday Ben!!!

Charming Design

So here is my latest creation. I made this step stool for my oh so sweet mother in law, Sally. She needed a cute gift for a shower that she is going to. So wall-aah! I thought it turned out quite charming. The saying on the back is one of my very, very favorites! It reads: "Lord, look down from heaven above and touch this special child with love. Protect and guide this little one until each and everyday is done. Remind us often that it's true. This little life is a gift from you. A miracle you've sent our way. Lord, bless this little child." Doesn't that just make you smile!

I think for my next designs I want to use phrases or sayings like Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious or HAKUNA MATATA. These rather small and somewhat meaningless words hold so much value to me and what makes me smile. So we'll see what they can help create....

My lil' Angel

To be fair I had to put up a couple of pics of Haddie Grace because the other day they were only of Hayden. This is yesterday afternoon at my house. The dress she is wearing is definatley vintage, it was mine when I was little. Isn't she gorgeous! She is hilarious to watch.

Kids make me smile in every sense of the word. They lighten the load and make life seem so simple. Well, I am only around them only so often, I'm sure any parent would tell you other wise during certain parts of the day, ie: nap time, etc... I'm the aunt that is constantly asking anyone around to "watch" and see how cute the little things my niece and nephew do. Even to their mother, my sister Cat, I tell her at least six times an hour: "Hey, you have to come watch Haddie make this face" or "listen to how Hayden says this word" or whatever the case may be. Which shes seen and heard a million times because they are her children and she is with them 24 hours a day... but being the good lil' sister she'll appease me and act like its the first time she's ever seen it. (Thanks by the way!) Also, poor Devin... everytime he would get comfortable I would have to show him something that one of the kids was doing. So he would get up and come over and say "Awe, cool." And then make his way back to what he was doing. I looked at Catherine and she said I think its a man thing. But I do have to say I was so impressed, Devin wanted to hug on Haddie yesterday all on his own, even though lil' miss busy-body wanted no such attention. Oh, she is just precious! I just hope that they adore me as much as I adored my aunts. They spoiled us rotten and we loved every minute of it!!!

Hhmmm... What to say?

Hhmmmm.... Hhmmmm... What to say, what to say? The weather has been fabulous all week long. This week God has really been tugging on my heart. I’m still unclear of what he’s doing, but I’m sure it’ll soon be revealed. Anyhoo… I got to play with my lil’ nephew, Hayden, and his lil’ sister, Haddie, for a couple of hours which is always a treat. They make me laugh with every thing they do. Hayden is getting so big. He loves to play in the dirt and tractors are his favorite, so naturally Aunt Christy combines to two! You can see from the smudge on his face he also loves chocolate… don’t worry they were just teddy grahams.

Now on to today: my father in law, Big Frosty aka Dennis, had to have back surgery. It’s been a long time coming, bless his heart. So this is how the long day began…. Frosty had to be at the hospital at like five am, so Devin and his brother, Rhett, wanted to make sure they were there before he went in and so they could be with their mom, Sally Jane. Devin was under the impression that the surgery would only take thirty minutes, well about three hours or so later he was finally out and taken to his room. This waiting alone was draining, plus knowing the seriousness of the procedure. The neurosurgeon had to relieve the pressure of his nerves around his spine, and I think they removed some of his bone too… anyway you can see how the impact of the clock was draining to the family as they just sat and waited. I made my way to the hospital once Frosty was taken to his room. I thought I would do fine, I just knew that I had grown out of the memories of my eighth grade year when my dad was hurt. But the moment I entered through the doors I remembered exactly how I felt when I had walked into the hospital back then, it had the same smell, the same lighting, ugh, the same feeling. It all hit me again. It does the same thing to me every time, but this time was different. Then this sudden fear came over me, the fear of loosing my Frosty. He is a second dad to me, he’s an amazing man. The instant I walked into his room and saw him laying there with the tubes and the machines I lost it. I started crying and of course Devin, his brother, his mom, and Frosty are just looking at me…. Like what in the world. I guess that’s just something I may never forget, a feeling that I won’t ever be able to describe. I’m trying to turn it into a positive and remember what came out of my dad’s tragedy… My Dad the Jesus Freak! Well, praise the Lord on all counts, because my dad is alive and Frosty’s surgery went great. We won’t know if there was any nerve damage for a couple of days, but I know God is in control so I’m not worried. It’s gonna be hard for Frosty to get around for about two weeks, but hopefully his back pain will disappear and his wound will heal nicely.

Thank you Lord for all you do. Your love and grace have forever changed me.

Ugh, what a Monday

Bolding going where NO one wants to go! Today I have to go to the dentist. Nope, its not just a checkup or a cleaning. I have to have a root canal and all the fun that goes along with that. I had an appointment on Friday and I was put on medication before they can start this process. So over the weekend I have been taking hydrocodone, which has never bothered me before... until now. Each time I take it my jaw feels much better, but the rest of my body becomes itchy. I have woken up the last two mornings with claw marks all down my legs. Nice right! So I am asking for prayer! Prayer to give me strength and to relax and prayer to make more money. I don't know what bothers me more, having someone drill in my mouth or having to pay an arm and a leg to get it done. Either way I just need peace about it. I hope you all have a much better start to your week. Kisses!!!

A Great Saturday Night

Yesterday we decided to enjoy something that we hadn’t done in awhile… Beer Butt Chicken. It was fabulous, once we seared the devil head off of it. Haha!!! John and Kandis, some of our adorable friends, made their way over and the entertainment began. We watched some football, played with music, and cooked a bunch. We made dips: spinach and artichoke, cheese and chili, and salsa, also enjoyed chicken legs, brauts, and then for dessert Kandis and I made this incredible cookie brownie concoction and topped it off with ice cream. Mmmmm it was all so good! When it comes to hanging out with friends, one can be sure that it is going to be absolutely amusing and unlimited fun. The silly lil’ acts are endless. Whether it be a hilarious, I mean hilarious, Halloween face mask or the boys making up a song that they will end up singing on and off the entire night. The talks seem to go on forever and any ridiculous topic can become a point of lengthy discussions. Be it the latest trend in hats, relationships, snakes that are really like 8 feet long, the latest gadgets, music- oh the music, there is no end to the list. Getting together with friends has become a daily routine, a real luxury. Consider yourself lucky if you get to hang around with friends often, I know I do. And of course one of the best places to hang out with friends is of course your own house or theirs! The comfort that your home offers can’t be offered any where else. You can be yourself, kick your heels up or take ‘em off, not worry about your looks and talk loudly about anything in the world (well inside). You need not worry about what to eat since there is a grill right outside the door and good, great, amazing food is the only thing that ever makes its way from there. You can eat as much as you want and however you want! The bottom line is to have fun. Still, its fun to go out on the town sometimes, but I will say the back porch somehow makes way for some of the funniest stories that I’m certain will be in the books for a very long time! (This is where I would insert a picture of Devin being scared to death by Kandis in the devil mask…. To bad there was no camera there to document this event!!! Haha) So there it was, a very well done Saturday night, delicious food, tasty wine (that will be saved for next time!!), fantastic company. Life is so simple and good!

Blogging Set in Motion

Into the world of blogging I go. My first thoughts of jumping into this endeavor were: I'm totally not a great writer, my plate is full, and do I really need all of Abilene knowing everything I do... which in a smaller sized town people already seem to or think they know every move you make. So with all those thoughts on the table, I decided to do this for me and a way to stay connected with some of my dear friends. I thought myspace would be a great way to do that, but Devin has always made fun of it by saying "Myspace is the Devil!" In some cases I can aggree. So this is just for me, a place for me to be seen and heard. A place to pop over to a friends page and see the happenings of their daily lives. A place I can be creative and put some down some words of feeling and thought. I know often time is short in getting to really spend time with one another and this is just another way to possibly get that done.
So... Here I go.
Heaven help us!!!